Flapper-turns-sleuth after a murder at a speakeasy is nothing new in the Historical Mystery genre, but Katharine Schellman puts a fun and fresh spin on it here in Last Call at the Nightingale.

I’ve enjoyed Schellman’s other mysteries and was eager to see what she would do with a new protagonist and setting, and I wasn’t disappointed.

The Jazz Age is terrific for setting and atmosphere of the writer knows how to use it properly, and Schellman proves that in spades here, taking a standard whodunit and dressing it up in all of its Prohibition Era finest.

Plucky but understated heroine Vivian is easy to root for, and she’s surrounded by a solid cast of secondary characters. Schellman weaves their stories together in a plot more intricate than what we usually get in this subgenre, keeping the pacing of the story compelling and giving us a satisfying ending to a layered mystery.

Though Vivian is pretty much all hero, some of the more nuanced secondary characters keep it interesting with their actions. I was particularly impressed by how Honor’s character revealed itself, and by how Vivian decides to handle her and all the moral grey area plot threads that surround her.

Audiobook readers: This is a great choice for this format. Faced paced enough that your mind won’t wander, and intriguing enough to keep you engaged. As always, my most important criteria for a narrator is subtlety, and Young does a lovely job on this book of being dynamic but never over-emotive.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love a good mystery and Schellman delivered. I liked Vivian and her sister and the 1920s setting was well-done. So many times, stories set in the 20s all feel the same. This one was different enough and I've thought about it several times since finishing it. I love that in a book!

Last Call at the Nightingale is a historical mystery set in Prohibition-era New York City by Katharine Schellman. The ebook version is 320 pages. I listened to the audiobook, which clocks in at a little over nine hours and is narrated by Sara Young.

Vivian spends her days working as a seamstress and her nights at The Nightingale, an underground dance hall and speakeasy. Her best friend Beatrice works there as a waitress, and she can often sweet talk bartender Danny into providing her drinks for free. An orphan, it's the only place where she feels at home. But then she discovers a body in the alley behind the club and certain individuals think she knows more about the crime than she actually does.

I had a fun time with this book. I'm a big fan of both historical fiction and mysteries and this is a good melding of the two. It's definitely of the amateur sleuth/cozy mystery variety and not thriller territory, so if you're looking for something to get your blood racing this is not the book for you.

There's some queer representation with Honor, the female owner of The Nightingale, who on-page notes that she is a lesbian. Vivian doesn't explicitly state her sexuality, but she does flirt with both men and women so it's possible that she's bisexual without the language to describe that. There are also a few mentions in the book noting that this speakeasy is a safe space for men to dance with other men and women to dance with other women.

We also see some discussion of racism and classism, with Beatrice being a black woman and Vivian being Irish and raised by nuns (with some allusions to her mother having both her and her older sister out of wedlock, which was scandalous at the time).

Tropes in this book include: amateur sleuth, queer side character

CW: death, murder, firearms, violence, racism, classism

Special thanks to Minotaur Books, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for providing an audio galley of this book for me to review.

Although this was an enjoyable audiobook and I liked the narrator, I didn't connect well with the main character (Vivian), who was a seamstress working in a fancy dressmaking shop, but who went out dancing and drinking every night - much to the dismay of her very conservative and fearful sister. The main character seemed too progressive for the time period and exhibited zero fear or inhibitions about putting herself in dangerous situations.

What a great story! I enjoyed the character development of all the different persons inhabiting the pages, and the description of the lives of poor seamstresses and bootleggers alike during the prohibition era. A whole new look at speakeasys as not just dens of vice, but also an outlet for people who had very few choices in life.

need to preface this review with this: I love this author and her other series [Lily Adler] and was excited to see that she had written a new series and was even more excited to be accepted for an ARC. It makes the rest of the review a little harder to write.

For the most part, I liked this book. There were issues, but I am attributing that to it being a new series with dramatically different characters than her other series. There were moments of real brilliance and Vivian is a fantastic MC. Unfortunately, there are moments where this really drags and the mystery really wasn't as fleshed out as it could have been [too many inconsequential characters that could have been culled in exchange for richer character development amongst the ones that truly matter to the story]. I would classify this more as plain HF rather than HM, but there IS a mystery so here we are. I do hope if there is a next one [that I will be first in line to read], that the mystery will be fleshed out more, now that we have the backstories of most of the main characters in the book - I can see these being 5 star books with some simple changes.

The supporting characters are some of the best written [I disliked Honor, but I am not sure if you are supposed to like her, and some of the dislike might have come from the narration as well] and the diversity among them is also some of the best I have seen. I like how they support each other and look out for each other and know that they are family, regardless of the color of their skin or orientation. That part of the book felt the most honest and real of the whole story. Vivian has moxie and her chutzpah helps her to both solve the mystery without dying [always a good thing] AND make things better for herself, her sister, and her chosen family.

Even though I didn't love this book [though I did love Vivian and I liked the red herrings that were thrown in - not all of them were obvious thankfully], I am glad I read it as I can see this being a really fantastic series and I would absolutely read a second one. Vivian and Co. are just too great of characters to leave them after one book.

I was also granted a audiobook ARC for this and this might be why I had some issues with the book. I find that narration really sets the tone and this narration was...not great. By no means was the worse that I have ever heard, but it was also not the best. Even though the narrator doesn't really do "voices" [and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate that - so many try and fail at that] and just reads the story [which again is glorious], her voice tends to go flat and emotionless, especially in times of heightened action and you are left feeling MEH over what just happened. There were several moments where I intellectually knew I should be on the edge of my seat, but my brain wouldn't let it happen because of the bland delivery. It caused major frustration more than once while listening to this book. If it was just a regular part of the story, it really wasn't that bad and I didn't mind her at all, but when action happened, it was just not okay. It ended up being very disappointing.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katharine Schellman, Sara Young - Narrator, St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books, and Dreamscape Media for providing the ARC and audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

LOVED THIS BOOK! If this author continued the story into a series, I will def be reading! I will be recommending this book to all my friends.

Dear Last Call at the Nightingale, enjoyed listening to you so very much. I loved the thrill ride you brought me into, and that you brought me back in time well. You were fun and intriguing, and a bit twisty too. do wish that the indecent acts of Wilson had been a bit clearer and that Hattie wasn't as morally grey as she came off to be. loved that Vivi was the only one paying enough attention to put everything together, and that she and her sister came to an understanding before the end of the story. I think the only part that I wanted more of is depth. Vivi seemed to float through her world, dealing with challenges head on, but never processing the emotional impact behind everything. She had such a pressing desire to be more than her narrow role as a woman and orphan in her world, but it all felt like it was on the surface. She was betrayed, lied to, and tricked, and she just floated on. Dear Last Call at the Nightingale, lenjoyed listening to you so very much. loved the thrill ride you brought me into, and that you brought me back in time so well. You were fun and intriguing, and a bit twisty too. I do wish that the indecent acts of Wilson had been a bit clearer and that Hattie wasn't as morally grey as she came off to be. loved that Vivi was the only one paying enough attention to put everything together, and that she and her sister came to an understanding before the end of the story. I think the only part that I wanted more of is depth. Vivi seemed to float through her world, dealing with challenges head on, but never processing the emotional impact behind everything. She had such a pressing desire to be more than her narrow role as a woman and orphan in her world, but it all felt like it was on the surface. She was betrayed, lied to, and tricked, and she just floated on.

✨ Review ✨ Last Call at the Nightingale by Katharine Schellman; Narrated by Sara Young

This was such a fun mystery set in the Roaring Twenties in NYC in the underground club scene -- perfect for a light Beach Read or audio for a summer trip!

Vivian Kelly, a seamstress and sister during the day, is a champagne-drinking, dance-loving regular at The Nightingale, an underground bar owned by Honor (aka Ms. Hux). After Vivian and her best friend Bea discover a body outside the bar, Vivian opens her eyes and ears to see what she can learn. Along with Bea, Danny (a bartender), and Leo Green (a friend of Danny's newly returned to town with a mysterious background), Vivian is on the case.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Genre: historical fiction, mystery, light f/m and f/f romance
Location: NYC, Roaring 20s
Pub Date: Out now!
Read On: Physical Book and Audiobook

This book was a fun, light read of Vivian's sleuthing, friendships and family relationships, and potential love interests. I enjoyed the Roaring Twenties setting though didn't feel like it pushed beyond the boundaries of other 20s Prohibition-era settings. I did appreciate that the author set up the Nightingale as a space that blurred the lines between gender and sexuality, as well as race, in a city and era that were very distinctly defined. This reminded me a lot of the amazing podcast Mob Queens and George Chauncey's Gay New York (a history of gay culture in NYC in the early 20th century).

The audio was great and easy to follow if that's your jam too!

Read this if you like:
⭕️ mysteries in historical settings
⭕️ Roaring Twenties - Prohibition, jazz and dancing, ambiguous gender boundaries
⭕️ champagne and sleuthing

Thanks to Minotaur Books, Dreamscape Media, and #netgalley for copies of this book!

The first book in a new mystery series by Katharine Schellman, Last Call at the Nightingale follows Vivian Kelly as she breaks free from her mundane seamstress job each evening for a jazz and bootlegged booze-filled nightclub in New York City.

Vivian lives to dance at the underground speakeasy each night, finding partner after partner to keep her toes tapping and the champagne flowing. Every night is a great escape from her wearisome existence until she discovers the body of a man in the alley while out on a smoke break. This unknown dead man turns out to be someone of prominence and now everyone wants to know what she knows—the club owner, the police commissioner, the bootleggers, even her sister.

Following Vivian’s trail was fun, I wished there was a little more description regarding the Nightingale itself. The book was more plot-driven and lacked descriptive details to set the Jazz-age scene. After seeing the cover, I was hoping for a little more Gatsby-esque vibe. The mystery was pretty solid, with enough red herrings to throw the average reader off the killer. Overall it wasn’t bad, but I’m not sure I will read the next.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Katharine Schellman for the advanced copy. Last Call at the Nightingale is available now. All opinions are my own.

An atmosphere that transports you to the back alleys of 1920s New York in stellar fashion, with engaging characters walking through a story that is just shy of being good enough for them.

Set around a speakeasy in prohibition era New York, Last Call at the Nightingale transports you to the world of Vivian Kelly, a girl who’s life hasn’t been especially rosy and is trying to find her place. Right now that place is surviving the drudgery of being a dime-rate seamstress by day, and escaping to the Nightingale to reinvent herself by night. Flanked by her friends Bea and Danny, employees of the Nightingale, and at constant odds with her puritanical sister, her life leaves a bit to be desired and she is constantly at risk of losing everything. Narrator Sara Young has a terrific voice for Vivian, and adds some depth to Vivian’s character that could have ended up lacking without her interpretation. Vivian has a great base as a character, but does get muddled by her naivete a bit too often, but Young helps her power through.

The plot here intends to revolve around a murder mystery after Vivian and Bea find a body in the alley behind the club, but it bobs a weaves a bit too much for the mystery to ever really take hold. Instead, the bulk of the time is spent describing the rough and tumble 1920s New York scenery, and adding color to the characters. The sister shows up just often enough to keep Vivian’s guilt holding tight, their unfeeling boss is a proper tyrant, and you will wait with bated breath to learn whether the mysterious Leo Green or the manipulative but ultimately goodhearted club owner Honor will win the battle for Vivian’s heart (or body, depending on the mood).

The atmosphere is truly the star of the Nightingale show, with vivid descriptions of the sights and sounds of the Jazz age. Vivian’s half-baked attempts at solving a mystery, based on what was ultimately a scheme of sorts that just happened to work out ok, takes her through a wide strata of social classes. Vivian herself lives in the projects (were they called that back then?), and you feel the struggles she has lived with when walking through her neighborhood. When delivering fancy dresses to fancy ladies in the upper echelons of society, it puts an even starker contrast on the different lives these women lead.

The mystery itself isn’t bad, but does suffer from slower pacing and being a bit underwhelming giving the build up given to it in the last quarter or so of the book. This end section is also the fault in Young’s performance, as you get the feeling she knows the conclusion isn’t as climactic as intended so she overperforms to compensate.

Despite some failings, it is just well rounded enough to have potential as the start to a new series. I won’t clamber for the next one, but will likely give it a shot when the time comes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an advance copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Set in 1920s New York at the height of prohibition and the Jazz age, this first book in a new historical mystery series featuring Vivian Kelly, a cannily smart working girl who loves to dance and gets caught up in a murder mystery at the Nightingale, her favorite speakeasy. Coerced by the mysterious and lesbian bar owner, Vivian finds herself investigating the dead man and who might have motive for his death.

I really enjoyed this book on audio narrated by Sara Young. The pacing and plot kept my interest and this was thoroughly enjoyable. I can't wait to read more books featuring these characters and the special queer positive speak easy. Recommended for fans of the Harlem Renaissance Mystery series by Nekesa Afia. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance listening copy!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio copy to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

This book has promise. 1920s New York. Prohibition. Speakeasy nightclubs. Romance. My understanding is this will be a series. I will read the next one just to see what the author does. There were times that I felt too much was happening in this book. Too many mysteries and storyline. Hoping the next book narrows in on one and doesn't try so hard to set up extra plot lines.

Thank you for the ALC in exchange for an honest review!

This isn't a normal genre for me, but I did enjoy it! Great audiobook narrator.

Last Call at the Nightingale by Katherine Schellman was well written and imagined. It explored the streets and neighborhoods as well as a particular speak easy in New York City during the colorful Jazz Age years of the early 1920’s when prohibition made selling alcoholic beverages illegal. The vivid descriptions of the rundown tenements, the opulent homes of the very wealthy, the unique and contrasting fashions of the wealthy and poor and the current dances popular with the patrons of the Nightingale were all so easy to visualize from the way the author described them. I felt like I was there, walking the streets, and seeing New York City as it had been in 1924.

Vivian and her older sister Florence had been orphaned at a young and impressionable age. They lived in an orphanage run by nuns until they were of age to live together on their own. They had been guided by the nuns to learn a trade so they would be able to support themselves when they made their way back into the world. They were taught how to sew. Both sisters worked in a dress shop where they sewed dresses and did alterations. Their employer was not very kind or appreciative. Both Vivian and Florence worked long hours and brought home just enough to barely make ends meet. Vivian was happiest when she was able to escape to the Nightingale, an underground dance hall. There Vivian was offered illegal drinks and the pleasure of dancing to help her forget her current situation. Florence never accompanied Vivian there. She was the more serious and conscientious of the two sisters. Vivian viewed The Nightingale as her escape from the reality of what her life was like. Several of the employees at The Nightingale befriended Vivian and watched out for her. One night Vivian and her friend Bea, who was a waitress at The Nightingale, went out into the alley to talk and have a cigarette when they discovered the body of a well dressed dead man. Vivian’s life was changed from that discovery. Intent on solving the mysteries of who the man was, who had killed him and the reason he was murdered became Vivian’s obsession. There were twists and turns around every corner. Every time I thought I had it figured out some new piece of information was added and changed my mind.

I really enjoyed listening to the audiobook of Last Call at the Nightingale by Katherine Schellman. It was narrated flawlessly by Cara Young. Thank you to Dreamscape Media LLC for allowing me to listen to the audiobook of Last Call at the Nightingale in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed listening to it and highly recommend it.

I listened to 50% of this audiobook and I just could not get into it. I found the narrator just a little too flat, I didn't get any of the feels that I think are in this book -- regarding the atmosphere of the clubs etc. I think perhaps this book is probably better as a physical book.

Since I did not finish this audiobook I will not publish it to any purchasing sites.

Thank you

I realized this is an era that I don't enjoy. (New York 1924).

I didn't like any of the characters, during that time period women were trashy or simple, and men cheesy. The murder plot didn't work for me, and the ending was over the top.

Sadly, I didn't like the narration.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for accepting my request to read and review Last Call at the Nightingale.

Last Call At The Nightingale by Katherine Schellman is now out in the world and its a great cozy mystery that takes place during the prohibition era. I loved the setting and the speakeasy location. All of the characters were great and diverse. I thought the author took the time to give them their own personalities while also giving us strong female characters and a nostalgic vibe. The mystery was great to, it kept changing with plenty of different suspects. I enjoyed the ending to.

Overall I really enjoyed this cozy mystery, it was a great setting, fun to read, and had great characters. I would definitely recommend grabbing a copy of this one!

Loved this who done it set in the 20’s.
The scene is set so it is very easy to imagine the Nightingale and all the characters. It will keep you guessing. But nicely tied in a bow, with room for another book!

While I liked the narrator, I’m not sure her voice was the best fit for this tale.

Thanks to NetGalley and Katherine Schellman for allowing me and early edition of this audiobook!

Last Call at the Nightingale is an atmospheric Jazz age mystery featuring our seamstress-by-day main character, Vivian. Nighttime is when she truly comes alive, in true spirit of the age, drinking and dancing the night away at an underground dance hall called the Nightingale. One night, expecting a carefree, reckless night, Vivian instead finds a body behind the hall and her life is turned upside down.

The Nightingale is a fun Prohibition-era read with a "whodunit" mystery. I love the entire atmosphere created around this time period in New York, and it made for a fun read. Vivian was a great character to go alongside with while solving the mystery, and the supporting characters were really unique and added to the story really well. The audio is fantastically narrated by Sara Young and I highly recommend it if you're into audiobooks!

Thanks to Dreamscape Media for the ALC!